Editing WDTN (section)

==Programming==
Game show host and announcer [[Johnny Gilbert]] hosted his own local daytime variety/talk show on WLWD immediately after the local airing of WLW television's ''Paul Dixon Show'' in the mid-1960s.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Official Johnny Gilbert Website |url=http://www.johnnygilbert.tv |access-date=January 27, 2024 |website=johnnygilbert.tv}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Johnny Gilbert Jeopardy Bio |url=http://www.jeopardy.com/showguide/bios/johnnygilbert/ |access-date=January 27, 2024 |website=jeopardy.com}}</ref>

[[Phil Donahue]] (former news anchor and radio talk show host at [[WHIO (AM)|WHIO radio]]) began hosting a talk show on WLWD in 1967,<ref>{{Cite magazine|url=https://ew.com/article/1996/11/08/phil-donahue-dawns-daytime/|title=Entertainment Weekly: "Donahue Dawns on Daytime", November 8, 1996.|magazine=[[Entertainment Weekly]] }}</ref> called ''[[The Phil Donahue Show]]'', that was then more issue-oriented (greatly reducing the station's program budget). Donahue's show went national in 1970. Since most programs on the WLW television regional network originated from WLWT in Cincinnati, it was the first time WLWD was the originator of a program.

Aside from Paul Dixon's weekday morning show, other Cincinnati-based programming that aired on WLWD included: ''The 50-50 Club'', hosted by Ruth Lyons (succeeded by Bob Braun after Lyons' 1967 retirement), and the Saturday evening country music program ''Midwestern Hayride''.

Due to WLWD's heavy local and regional programming schedule, many network programs from NBC and ABC were recorded on film as a [[kinescope]] for later airing. On rare occasions when a program was unavailable (sometimes due to network technical difficulties or if fill time was available before or after a network sportscast), a half-hour series entitled ''Star Performance'', consisting mostly of drama [[television pilot|pilot]]s from the 1950s, would air. Fifteen-minute mini-documentaries or newsreels would also air as a time filler under the title ''Miniature Theater''.

During the summer of 1983, WDTN was exempted from running ABC's [[soap opera]]s after 2 p.m., since WKRC-TV's signal easily covered Dayton. As a result, the station ran cartoons and off-network [[sitcom]]s in place of ''[[One Life to Live]]'' and ''[[General Hospital]]''. By the late 1980s, these were replaced with first run talk shows such as ''[[The Oprah Winfrey Show]]'' (at 4 p.m.), ''[[The Montel Williams Show]]'', and ''[[The Jerry Springer Show]]''. WDTN would begin its talk block at 2 p.m. during the week. In 2000, [[Time Warner Cable]] (Dayton's largest cable system) dropped the Cincinnati network affiliates to make room for new cable channels. The Cincinnati stations had been available on cable in the Dayton area ever since cable arrived there in the mid-1960s. As a result, ABC soap viewers could no longer see ''One Life to Live'' or ''General Hospital'', while over-the-air viewers could still pick them up on [[WCPO-TV]] (which had become Cincinnati's ABC affiliate in 1996). In the fall of 2000, ''General Hospital'' returned to WDTN's schedule; after the station came under the control of LIN TV in May 2002, ''One Life to Live'' was added to the schedule as well. From this point on, WDTN aired the entire ABC schedule in pattern until the station returned to NBC in 2004.

===News operation===
In the 1970s and 1980s, WDTN used the ''[[Eyewitness News]]'' branding. For most of its history, its newscasts have been a runner-up to market leader WHIO-TV. On April 11, 2012, the station announced that it was in the process of reconstructing its studios in preparation for the production of high definition content.<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.facebook.com/search/results.php?q=WDTN&init=quick&tas=search_preload&search_first_focus=1334667631697#!/wdtn2/posts/283015985113673 | title = We just updated our HD construction photo gallery. We are excited to deliver our news in HD for you.....soon! | website = [[Facebook]] | date = April 11, 2012 | access-date = April 17, 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url = http://interactives.wdtn.com/photomojo/gallery/2111/1/construction-underway-for-hd/construction-underway-for-hd/ | title = Construction underway for HD | access-date = April 17, 2012}}</ref> After June 8, 2012, newscasts were moved to the station's newsroom as the new news set was being built in the same location as the old one.<ref>{{ cite web | url = http://www.wdtn.com/dpp/news/2-news-prepares-for-hd-transition | title = 2 NEWS prepares for HD transition | date = June 8, 2012 | access-date = June 16, 2012 }}</ref> The first high definition newscast was at 6 p.m. on Saturday, July 21, 2012.<ref>{{ cite web | url = http://www.wdtn.com/dpp/news/local/montgomery/wdtn-tv-goes-hd-this-weekend | title = WDTN-TV goes HD this weekend | date = July 20, 2012 | access-date = July 21, 2012 }}</ref> WDTN was the second station in Dayton to have made the upgrade to HD newscasts; the shows on WBDT were included in the upgrade.

On August 18, 2007, the station began to produce a nightly prime time newscast for WBDT, known as ''2 News at 10 on Dayton's CW''. This show achieved higher ratings than [[WRGT-TV]]'s nightly prime time news in Dayton's metered market households on the 26th day of its broadcast. That year, ''2 News'' won the "[[Edward R. Murrow]] Award for Overall Excellence" for the second straight year.

In May 2011, the station changed the name of its weekday 5–7&nbsp;a.m. newscast from ''2 News Sunrise'' to ''2 News Today''.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.wdtn.com/ |title=Archive.org |date=May 8, 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110508100938/http://www.wdtn.com/ |archive-date=May 8, 2011 }}</ref> On November 14, 2011, the station moved ''2 News Today'''s start time to 4:30&nbsp;a.m.,<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.wdtn.com/dpp/news/2-news-today-moves-to-400-am | title = 2 News Today moves to 4:30 am | date = November 10, 2011 | access-date = November 19, 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite news | url = http://www.bizjournals.com/dayton/news/2011/11/10/wdtn-tv-expands-morning-show.html | title = WDTN-TV expands morning show | publisher = Dayton Business Journal | author = Ginger Christ | date = November 10, 2011}}</ref> probably in response to WHIO-TV's similar lengthening of its morning news on August 15.

In August 2011, the station announced plans to replace its weekday hour-long newscast, ''2 News at Noon'', with a local lifestyle talk show called ''Living Dayton'', starting in early January 2012. It was planned that anchor Marsha Bonhart, Holly Samuels and meteorologist Jamie Jarosik would deliver news and weather at the top of the broadcast, and that the show would cover any breaking news.<ref>{{cite web |url = http://www3.wdtn.com/dpp/entertainment/call-for-lifestyle-show-hosts-experts |title = Call for lifestyle show hosts, experts |date=August 30, 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.daytondailynews.com/blogs/content/shared-gen/blogs/dayton/seen_and_overheard/entries/2011/09/01/wdtntv_to_replace_noon_news_wi.html|title=WDTN-TV to replace noon news with lifestyle show |publisher=[[Dayton Daily News]]|first=Amelia|last=Robinson|date=September 1, 2011}}</ref> ''Living Dayton'' premiered on February 6, 2012,<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.wdtn.com/dpp/living_dayton/living-dayton-premiers-on-wdtn | title = Living Dayton premiers on WDTN | date = February 6, 2012}}</ref> with newly hired hosts Nathalie Basha and [[Zuri Hall]]. Later on February 6, it was announced that Jim Bucher would join the show as a contributor.<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.wdtn.com/dpp/living_dayton/buch-joins-living-dayton | title = Buch joins Living Dayton | date = February 6, 2012}}</ref> The inclusion of news headlines and a weather forecast began on February 9; on the same day, Basha and Hall began providing a brief commentary-style discussion of topical issues, sometimes with a guest contributor, immediately following the news/weather segment.<ref>{{cite web | url-access=limited  |archive-url = https://ghostarchive.org/iarchive/facebook/121049478001739/185575621549124 |archive-date = April 30, 2022| url = http://www.facebook.com/LivingDayton/posts/185575621549124 |title = Living Dayton on Facebook  |website=[[Facebook]]}}{{cbignore}}{{User-generated source|certain=yes|date=March 2022}}</ref>

On January 7, 2013, WBDT began to air a weekday news program from 7 to 9&nbsp;a.m., called ''2 News Today on Dayton's CW''.<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.facebook.com/wdtn2#!/wdtn2/posts/384865218273989 | title = Starting Monday, 2... | website = [[Facebook]] | date = January 3, 2013 | access-date = January 5, 2013}}</ref>

In January 2015, the station renamed its hour-long 5&nbsp;p.m. weekday newscast ''Five on 2'', and included more features, interviews and longer-form stories.<ref>{{ cite web | url = http://www.wdtn.com | title = WDTN | access-date = October 28, 2017 | url-status = dead | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20150120040013/http://wdtn.com/ | archive-date = January 20, 2015 }}</ref>

On September 11, 2017, the station added an hour-long 4&nbsp;p.m. weekday newscast, ''2 News First at 4''; it is the first and only 4&nbsp;p.m. local newscast in the market.<ref>{{ cite news | url = http://www.tvnewscheck.com/article/106559/wdtn-dayton-to-roll-out-4-pm-newscast | title = WDTN Dayton To Roll Out 4 P.M. Newscast | last = Miller | first = Mark K. | date = August 17, 2017 | website = TVNewsCheck | access-date = October 28, 2017 }}</ref>

On April 4, 2020, WDTN debuted a weekend morning newscast airing Saturdays and Sundays from 6 to 8 a.m.

On July 23, 2021, WDTN debuted a new set, with updated graphics having been rolled out in the preceding weeks.<ref>{{cite news | url = https://www.wdtn.com/news/local-news/its-here-wdtn-debuts-new-look-new-technology/ | title = It's here! WDTN debuts new look, new technology | publisher = WDTN | date = July 23, 2021 | access-date = September 26, 2021 | url-status = live | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210726183650/https://www.wdtn.com/news/local-news/its-here-wdtn-debuts-new-look-new-technology/ | archive-date = July 26, 2021 }}</ref>

On September 2, 2021, Mark Allan, anchor for over 25 years, retired from broadcasting. Allan arrived at the station in fall 1995 from [[KAKE (TV)]] in Wichita, Kansas, first anchoring coverage of the then-ongoing [[Dayton Peace Accords]].<ref>{{cite news | url = https://www.bizjournals.com/dayton/news/2021/05/27/longtime-dayton-tv-anchor-to-retire.html | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210527160301/https://www.bizjournals.com/dayton/news/2021/05/27/longtime-dayton-tv-anchor-to-retire.html | url-status = dead | archive-date = May 27, 2021 | title = Longtime Dayton TV anchor to retire | author = DBJ staff | publisher = [[Dayton Business Journal]] | date = May 27, 2021 | access-date = September 26, 2021 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news | url = https://marketshare.tvnewscheck.com/2021/09/02/mark-allan-retiring-after-25-years-anchoring-at-wdtn-dayton/ | title = Mark Allan Retiring After 25 Years Anchoring At WDTN Dayton | last = Greeley | first = Paul | publisher = TVNewsCheck | date = September 2, 2021 | access-date = September 26, 2021 | url-status = live | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210903122027/https://marketshare.tvnewscheck.com/2021/09/02/mark-allan-retiring-after-25-years-anchoring-at-wdtn-dayton/ | archive-date = September 3, 2021 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news | url = https://www.wdtn.com/celebrating-mark-allan/celebrating-mark-allan-thank-you-for-letting-me-be-your-news-guy/ | title = Celebrating Mark Allan: 'Thank you for letting me be your news guy' | author = WDTN.com staff | publisher = WDTN | date = September 2, 2021 | access-date = September 26, 2021 | url-status = live | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210927002722/https://www.wdtn.com/celebrating-mark-allan/celebrating-mark-allan-thank-you-for-letting-me-be-your-news-guy/ | archive-date = September 27, 2021 }}</ref>

WDTN includes segments from the syndicated consumer and personal finance series ''Money Talks with Stacy Johnson'' as part of its newscasts.

The station maintains news partnerships with several area newspapers. In addition to its main studios, WDTN operates bureaus in Springfield (on West Main Street) and in [[Xenia, Ohio|Xenia]] (in the ''Xenia Daily Gazette'' newsroom on South Detroit Street).
 
WDTN operates its own [[weather radar]] known on-air as "Live Doppler 2 HD" (formerly as "Live Doppler 2X"). The station's weather reports are branded as "Storm Team 2" and ''were'' sometimes branded as "Live Doppler 2X".

For many years, [[Charlie Van Dyke]] was the voice heard on WDTN's [[station identification#Combining identification with promotion|station IDs]], news intros, [[promo (media)|promo]]s, and other [[voice-over]] work. In September 2011, Van Dyke was replaced by [[Roger Rose]].<ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.wdtn.com/dpp/participate/mailbag/marks-mailbag-october-21st |title = Mark's Mailbag: October 21st |date=October 22, 2011}}</ref>

====Notable former on-air staff====
* [[Len Berman]] – news and sports reporter, now retired (formerly at [[NBC Sports]] and [[WNBC-TV]])<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.ramentertainment.com/details.cfm?artist=1470 | title=Celebrity Talent Roster | date=April 3, 2012 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=http://maristpoll.marist.edu/tag/len-berman/ | title=Home of the Marist Poll &#124; Polls, Analysis, Learning, and More }}</ref>
* [[Fran Charles]] – weekend sports anchor (now at [[MLB Network]]) 
* [[Julie Chen]] – reporter & anchor; now host of [[Big Brother (American TV series)|the U.S. version of ''Big Brother'']], former co-host of ''[[The Talk (talk show)|The Talk]]'' (both on [[CBS]])<ref>{{Cite web |title=Julie Chen Bio |url=https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/julie-chen/bio/195194 |access-date=January 27, 2024 |website=tvguide.com}}</ref><ref>{{Citation |title=WDTN-TV Big Brother Star Julie Chen Reports 1996 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZRoeINnciec |access-date=January 27, 2024 |language=en}}</ref>
* Jodine Costanzo – reporter (now at [[WPXI]])
* [[Phil Donahue]] – host of ''The Phil Donahue Show'', as described above
* [[Johnny Gilbert]] – local talk-variety show host in mid-1960s, as described above (now announcer on ''[[Jeopardy!]]'')
* [[Gordon Jump]] – host of ''Gordon Jump's Fun Time'' and&nbsp;''High Time''; also WLWD's director of special broadcast services (1961-1965)
* [[Jessica Moore (journalist)|Jessica Moore]] – reporter (now at [[WCBS-TV]])<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.wdtn.com/dpp/news/carl_nichols_retires | title = Carl Nichols is laying down the clicker | date = January 2, 2009 | access-date = December 9, 2011}}</ref>
* [[Dan Patrick (sportscaster)|Dan Patrick]] – sports anchor (now at NBC Sports)<ref>{{Cite web |title=Dan Patrick Biography (1957-) |url=http://www.filmreference.com/film/23/Dan-Patrick.html |access-date=January 27, 2024 |website=www.filmreference.com}}</ref><ref>{{ cite journal | title = On Top of His Game | journal = American Journalism Review | publisher = University System of Maryland | issue = May 1999 | last = Lisheron | first = Mark | url = http://www.ajr.org/Article.asp?id=556 | access-date = July 5, 2011 }}</ref>
* [[John Seibel]] – anchor (now [[executive director]] of a [[nonprofit organization]])